System, blood culturing: medical device reports filed with FDA

6,422 reports carry this product code, 1996–2026; 10 brands with a page.

Read first · FDA's statement on these data

Adverse event reports submitted to FDA do not undergo extensive validation or verification. Therefore, a causal relationship cannot be established between product and reactions listed in a report. While a suspected relationship may exist, it is not medically validated and should not be the sole source of information for clinical decision making or other assumptions about the safety or efficacy of a product. Additionally, it is important to remember that adverse event reports represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product. Common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product. openFDA, FDA

FDA adds: "Although MDRs are a valuable source of information, this passive surveillance system has limitations, including the potential submission of incomplete, inaccurate, untimely, unverified, or biased data. In addition, the incidence or prevalence of an event cannot be determined from this reporting system alone due to potential under-reporting of events and lack of information about frequency of device use." And: "MDR data alone cannot be used to establish rates of events, evaluate a change in event rates over time or compare event rates between devices. The number of reports cannot be interpreted or used in isolation to reach conclusions about the existence, severity, or frequency of problems associated with devices."

Do not rely on openFDA to make decisions regarding medical care. While we make every effort to ensure that data is accurate, you should assume all results are unvalidated.

Not medical advice. This site counts what was reported to FDA. Questions about a medicine or device belong with a pharmacist or clinician.

6,422
reports with this product code: 0% of all MAUDE reports; 645
reports, 12 months to August 2026: 1,755 in the 12 months before; 97.3%
classified as malfunction: 62.3% across all reports; 0.2%
classified as death, as reported: 0.9% across all reports

Product code MDB is FDA's classification for "System, blood culturing" (microbiology panel), a class 1 device. 6,422 medical device reports carry this product code, 0% of the MAUDE database, from October 1996 to August 2026.

645 reports arrived in the 12 months to August 2026, down 63% from 1,755 in the 12 months before. FDA releases MAUDE data monthly; reports can arrive months after an event, so the newest months grow in later releases. The event types recorded are malfunction (97.3%), injury (2.4%) and death (0.2%). 10 brand names with a page on this site carry this code; the brands table is ordered by report count for navigation only. FDA states that "MDR data alone cannot be used to establish rates of events, evaluate a change in event rates over time or compare event rates between devices. The number of reports cannot be interpreted or used in isolation to reach conclusions about the existence, severity, or frequency of problems associated with devices." It adds that the reporting system "has limitations, including the potential submission of incomplete, inaccurate, untimely, unverified, or biased data."

Brands with this product code

Brand	Reports	Latest 12 months	Classified as death	Classified as malfunction
BD BACTEC MGIT Mycobacteria Growth Indicator Tubes	1,224	108	0%	100%
BD BACTEC Plus Aerobic/F Culture Vials (plastic)	1,068	82	0.1%	95.8%
BD BACTEC Lytic/10 Anaerobic/F Culture Vials (plastic)	787	99	0.1%	98.1%
Bd Bactec Fx Instrument Top Packaged	447	0	0.2%	99.8%
Bd Bactec Peds Plus / F Culture Vials Plastic	330	79	0%	96.7%
Bd Bbl Mgit Mycobacteria Growth Indicator Tubes 7ml	314	10	0%	100%
BD BACTEC Plus Anaerobic/F Culture Vials (plastic)	228	99	0%	98.2%
BD BACTEC MGIT 960 Supplement Kit	220	71	0%	99.5%
Mynxgrip Vascular Closure Device 6f-7f	2	0	0.6%	83.9%
BD BACTEC MGIT 960 SIRE Kit	1	94	0%	100%

Ordered by report count for navigation only. FDA states that "MDR data alone cannot be used to establish rates of events, evaluate a change in event rates over time or compare event rates between devices. The number of reports cannot be interpreted or used in isolation to reach conclusions about the existence, severity, or frequency of problems associated with devices." It adds that the reporting system "has limitations, including the potential submission of incomplete, inaccurate, untimely, unverified, or biased data."

Manufacturers named

Manufacturer (as written on reports)	Reports	Share
Becton Dickinson & Sparks	2,775	43.2%
Becton Dickinson Caribe	2,474	38.5%
Biomerieux	751	11.7%
Biom Rieux	190	3%
Bd Caribe	90	1.4%
Becton Dickinson And	14	0.2%
Bd	3	0%
Becton Dickinson And Bd Biosciences	3	0%
Cordis Santa Clara	2	0%

Reports by month, five years

FDA releases MAUDE data monthly; reports can arrive months after an event, so the newest months grow in later releases.

Event type and report source

Event type

Death0.2%13

Injury2.4%154

Malfunction97.3%6,248

Other0.1%6

Not given0%1

Who filed

Manufacturer report99.6%6,394

Voluntary report0.3%17

User facility report0%0

Distributor report0%0

Not given0.2%11

Grey bar: all 26,136,888 MAUDE reports.

Device problems coded

Device problem (FDA code)	Reports	Share
Incorrect, inadequate or imprecise result or readings	2,668	41.5%
False positive result	2,453	38.2%
False negative result	472	7.3%
Contamination	458	7.1%
Device markings/labelling problema problem with the device markings or label	140	2.2%
Leak/splashthe device leaked	119	1.9%
Cross reactivity	103	1.6%
Contamination of device ingredient or reagent	48	0.7%
Microbial contamination of device	35	0.5%
Breakthe device broke	31	0.5%
Fluid/blood leak	29	0.5%
Incorrect or inadequate test results	21	0.3%
Unintended movement	20	0.3%
Missing information	19	0.3%
Device displays incorrect message	16	0.2%
Device operates differently than expectedthe device behaved unexpectedly	15	0.2%
Overheating of device	15	0.2%
Crackthe device cracked	14	0.2%
Contamination /decontamination problem	13	0.2%
Device contamination with chemical or other material	13	0.2%

Questions about system, blood culturing reports

What is product code MDB?

FDA's classification code for "System, blood culturing", class 1, reviewed by the microbiology panel. Every device report carries the product code of the device involved.

How many reports carry this code?

6,422 reports through August 2026, 645 of them in the latest 12 months.

Which brands appear most often?

BD BACTEC MGIT Mycobacteria Growth Indicator Tubes (1,224), BD BACTEC Plus Aerobic/F Culture Vials (plastic) (1,068), BD BACTEC Lytic/10 Anaerobic/F Culture Vials (plastic) (787), Bd Bactec Fx Instrument Top Packaged (447) and Bd Bactec Peds Plus / F Culture Vials Plastic (330). Widely used products collect more reports because more people use them.

Can the brands table be used to rank the devices?

No. FDA states that "MDR data alone cannot be used to establish rates of events, evaluate a change in event rates over time or compare event rates between devices. The number of reports cannot be interpreted or used in isolation to reach conclusions about the existence, severity, or frequency of problems associated with devices." It adds that the reporting system "has limitations, including the potential submission of incomplete, inaccurate, untimely, unverified, or biased data." Brands differ in how many are in use, how long they have been sold and how reports are collected.

Where this comes from. Counts are built from the openFDA Device Adverse Event (MAUDE) bulk export released 28 Sep 2026, which holds reports FDA received through 31 Aug 2026. Brand, generic and manufacturer names are as written on the reports; product code names come from FDA's device classification. No report narrative, lot number, patient detail or reporter identity is published. See the methodology and sources; FDA's record is authoritative, and corrections are handled within five working days.

Drug data (FAERS) through 30 Jun 2026; device data (MAUDE) through 31 Aug 2026. Not medical advice.